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Post by Chris on Sept 5, 2005 10:23:29 GMT -5
I bought some Daphnia on Saturday with the intention of breeding it to feed to the fish. It was in a 5 gallon tank and was left on the window sill.
This morning the tank seems empty. I trust it's all dead!
How do I breed it successfully?!
Chris
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Post by richardw on Sept 5, 2005 11:12:00 GMT -5
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Post by willywonkar on Sept 5, 2005 11:15:25 GMT -5
NOT IN A TANK INDOORS CHRIS.
I dealt selling daph to tropical fish shops, it was all collected by hand, not as hard as it sounds, daph is found in ponds ( still waters) normally the best have no fish in them, i have seen a pond go blood red in summer with a bloom of daphnia. Daphnia is light sensitive and in bright weather will be near the bottom or in shade, its collected in a fine mesh hand net, the type you buy in aquarists, about 10 x 6 or 8, you have to cheque ponds and ditches yourself but where its thick its thick. harder to find in the winter but still around in sheltered waters.To collect daphnia you must work the net (which you will have fixed to a pole to suit yourself)in a figure of eight movement, this creates a swirl of water which keeps the daph in one area , you will feel the net getting harder to work as the daph gets on the meshes this is the time to shake whats in the net into one corner and transfer to your container.keep doing this untill you have enough, it does not take long when you get used to it. Always try to keep more than one water on the go and never strip a water, leave plenty to seed them for the future, you will find sometimes the daph is tiny leave this for a week or so as its only young.
Daphnia eggs have been found in the pyramids in the dust and successfully hatched ,a dry pond or depression in the ground after heavy rainfall can get a hatch if it holds water for 24 hrs it hatches so quickly, i hope this is some help to you and it realy is'nt as complicated as all that, old water buts in churchyards are often good for a bit every now and again.best of luck
John P.
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Post by willywonkar on Sept 5, 2005 11:19:59 GMT -5
Chris,
one more thing when carrying daph DONT PUT TOO MUCH IN EACH CONTAINER AS IT IS SO ACTIVE IT TAKES A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF OXYGEN OUT OF THE WATER. carry in black bags as this slows it down
J P. AGAIN
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Post by nicepix on Sept 5, 2005 13:11:36 GMT -5
I bought some Daphnia on Saturday with the intention of breeding it to feed to the fish. It was in a 5 gallon tank and was left on the window sill. This morning the tank seems empty. I trust it's all dead! How do I breed it successfully?! Chris Have you no heart? Poor little devils barely dead and all you can think about is sex! |
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Post by Hambo on Sept 5, 2005 16:51:48 GMT -5
I kept some very successfully around 20 years ago in a kids paddling pool. I spread sand on the bottom and put just 5 to 6 inches of water in the pool. They had a little shade, but not much. What really got them going was some well rotted horse manure spread on the bottom. In no time, the bottom was an orange mass. You know, they would probably be great in sushi.
Be sure to cover the pool with fine mesh netting or you may find the daphnia disappearing due to an infestation of dragonfly larvae.
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Post by Chris on Sept 6, 2005 2:20:25 GMT -5
Thanks for all the responses, PMs, links etc on the subject.
Maybe leaving the tank on a windowsil on Sunday in the scorching heat wasn't a great idea.
Chris
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Post by kevzim on Sept 6, 2005 5:01:36 GMT -5
I'd warrant it was the heat rather than the light that topped 'em. Don't bin the tank contents - aerate it. You'd be surprised at how often this leads to a "resurrection." Direct sunlight won't be marvellous for them, but some light is necessary in my book, as it promotes the growth of algae for them to feed upon. Always worked for me anyways. Better luck next time. Oh - I'd be a bit wary about collecting them and then feeding them to expensive fish without a long quarantine period, and a few water changes, just in case...  |
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Post by Chris on Sept 6, 2005 5:02:47 GMT -5
Kev, I bought the daphnia in a fish shop which was selling them bagged up for fish food - I guess these are produced by manufacturers who have been rearing them for a long time so assume they're safe  Chris |
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Post by kevzim on Sept 6, 2005 9:19:36 GMT -5
Ja ja - I recall - just referring to the previous post about netting them from a pond... I've lost some very expensive fish, and a tank of giant snails (when they were pretty expensive too) through introducing problems with food sourced from the wild... The horse manure idea intrigues me. I suppose it would be a good source of nitrogen to promoat the growth of algae, if not as a food supply in its own right. Be interesting to set up a few tanks and test the suggestions given above... Where's me white coat gone? |
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